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tomstbr's review against another edition
2.0
Really cool ideas marred by constant character shifts and not much really happening. However, this could be a West African story telling mode, where a tale is told from many perspectives, so I don't want to judge it too harshly on my perceptions. The story involves aliens, super humans and a giant spider. Great premise but I never felt a release, although there was a good strong building of tension. There's this weird mix between ambiguity that left me frustrated at the lack of explanation, and the consistent exposition and reiteration of character thoughts/actions. Cool insight into Nigeria/Lagos (the slang!) and it's a challenging book on some levels, and for all the complicated plot lines I felt let down.
lsparrow's review against another edition
4.0
an epic story teller - story of everyday life, politics, magic and aliens.
megadeathvsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I'm super into international science fiction right now. This was a fascinating story, well told and engaging.
tricapra's review against another edition
3.0
So I liked the book and I had stuff to say about it, until it literally ended with some shade thrown at Drake. Like, second to last line calling him a "shitty, whiny rapper" I'm dying, that's amazing.
tedpikul's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
kleonard's review against another edition
4.0
I like Okorafor's work, but this one wasn't to my taste. A bit dull, peopled with characters who are not up to the author's usually deft creation.
doritobabe's review against another edition
4.0
3.5/5
An alien invasion science fiction adventure that acts as an introduction to the people and land of Nigeria: steeped in folklore, danger, and the need for survival.
TL;DR:
Writing: 4/5 (Okorafor is a very wonderful writer. Not overly complicated, but enough to encapsulate the reader. Unfortunately, this story has a bit much in the way of excess chapters that affect the story, leaving the reader to feel certain things were/are unnecessary.)
Plot: 3.5/5 (The alien invasion is very exciting, but gets lost in the chaos of the contemporary world.)
Characters: 3.5/5 (Starts off strong with three special characters, but much ends up unexplained and eventually there are too many characters --those unnecessary chapters-- to maintain a strong story.
I picked this up the same time as [b:The Devourers|27245999|The Devourers|Indra Das|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1457779021s/27245999.jpg|45152899]. They were close together and both had attractive covers to entice my imagination.
Okorafor's fiction is like a love letter to Nigeria, to Lagos. By reading Lagoon, one sees the lives of many people in Nigeria and how the author feels that this country is in need of aid/assistance to overcome their problems. Maybe by focusing on Nigeria, Okorafor is detailing all of humankind's folly by showing the worst of these people.
The story goes like this: Aliens invade. They aren't just any kind of alien, however. They are special water-living-shapeshifting creatures that want to help heal the world. They answer the wishes of all the animals on the planet (including humans) by starting with sea creatures. The aliens focus on three people: Adadora, Agu, and Anthony. They are all special. Maybe it's magic powers, maybe they are alien in nature, too. We don't know, and we don't find out. A+A+A all face issues associated with the alien invasion, some problems are related to their personal lives and affect how the invasion is handled and experienced. The story ends with the aliens remaining; calmer, and more helpful, BETTER than the humans.
As I mentioned above, there is soooo much that goes on in this book that I think it loses sight of it's original intent. It could have been much stronger if it wasn't so chaotic and confusing. As much as I remember this novel, I am not sure I remember *what* exactly happened in it --save a few snapshots here and there-- or what it really *means*.
Perhaps this is one of those books that goes over my head with it's literary meaning, themes, etc, etc,.
An alien invasion science fiction adventure that acts as an introduction to the people and land of Nigeria: steeped in folklore, danger, and the need for survival.
TL;DR:
Writing: 4/5 (Okorafor is a very wonderful writer. Not overly complicated, but enough to encapsulate the reader. Unfortunately, this story has a bit much in the way of excess chapters that affect the story, leaving the reader to feel certain things were/are unnecessary.)
Plot: 3.5/5 (The alien invasion is very exciting, but gets lost in the chaos of the contemporary world.)
Characters: 3.5/5 (Starts off strong with three special characters, but much ends up unexplained and eventually there are too many characters --those unnecessary chapters-- to maintain a strong story.
I picked this up the same time as [b:The Devourers|27245999|The Devourers|Indra Das|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1457779021s/27245999.jpg|45152899]. They were close together and both had attractive covers to entice my imagination.
Okorafor's fiction is like a love letter to Nigeria, to Lagos. By reading Lagoon, one sees the lives of many people in Nigeria and how the author feels that this country is in need of aid/assistance to overcome their problems. Maybe by focusing on Nigeria, Okorafor is detailing all of humankind's folly by showing the worst of these people.
The story goes like this: Aliens invade. They aren't just any kind of alien, however. They are special water-living-shapeshifting creatures that want to help heal the world. They answer the wishes of all the animals on the planet (including humans) by starting with sea creatures. The aliens focus on three people: Adadora, Agu, and Anthony. They are all special. Maybe it's magic powers, maybe they are alien in nature, too. We don't know, and we don't find out. A+A+A all face issues associated with the alien invasion, some problems are related to their personal lives and affect how the invasion is handled and experienced. The story ends with the aliens remaining; calmer, and more helpful, BETTER than the humans.
As I mentioned above, there is soooo much that goes on in this book that I think it loses sight of it's original intent. It could have been much stronger if it wasn't so chaotic and confusing. As much as I remember this novel, I am not sure I remember *what* exactly happened in it --save a few snapshots here and there-- or what it really *means*.
Perhaps this is one of those books that goes over my head with it's literary meaning, themes, etc, etc,.
kivt's review against another edition
3.0
This was actually pretty disappointing! I love Okorafor's work and I was really looking forward to her response to District 9. The story is unfortunately super jumbled and disjointed. There are a lot of really intriguing ideas and thrilling/chilling/hilarious moments, but they are too few and short to keep the whole book together.
laila4343's review against another edition
4.0
Weird. Interesting. I think there's a lot of Nigerian mythology that I'm unaware of running through this book. But it was great fun, especially the last third of the book. I want to read more of Okorafor's novels for sure.
(Book 6 of my Ten Books of Summer per Cathy's 20 Books of Summer blog challenge.)
(Book 6 of my Ten Books of Summer per Cathy's 20 Books of Summer blog challenge.)
eeva's review against another edition
3.0
Very interesting, and I liked the ending!
Although, personally, the writing style did not mesh with me.
Although, personally, the writing style did not mesh with me.